Friday, February 14, 2025

Children's Book Review for Around the Garden We GROW by Florence Ogunlesi, Sarah Ganginis, Aurelio Del Pino (illustrator)

Around the Garden We GROW by Florence Ogunlesi, Sarah Ganginis, Aurelio Del Pino (illustrator)

Published:  February 4, 2025 by Blue Balloon Books

Taken from Amazon:  Respect means that we value and accept others. It is important to respect the food choices and traditions of all humans.

Come explore community gardens, farmers’ markets, grocery stores, and more to discover what it means to be part of a community that thrives on growth! Around the Garden We GROW is perfect for curious young readers with an appetite for making sense of the world around them. With empathy and inclusivity, it opens up a conversation for kids to learn about food, growth, and respect. Its emphasis on encouraging curiosity, respecting food choices and cultures, understanding access to food, and embracing size diversity will follow readers far beyond their backyard for years to come. Whether you explore Around the Garden We GROW in parts or as a whole, it’s a great resource for parents, caregivers, teachers, and young readers themselves.

 

My Thoughts: *Around the Garden We GROW* is an excellent resource for teaching children about gardening and fruits and vegetables. The story is clear, and it vividly describes the colors, tastes, and textures of various produce. The book's four sections provide great stopping points for discussion. Don't miss section four with its recipes.

The illustrations showcased a diverse array of characters, ensuring that each child could identify with someone. The artwork was vibrant and visually engaging, characterized by its striking colors and layouts.  

Thank you Blue Balloon Publishing for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

 

Author Bios:

Florence Ogunlesi MA, RD, LDN, is a food and nutrition expert. Her years of experience have taken her through various areas in the nutrition field, from working with patients of all ages in acute care hospitals to working in home care providing nutrition education to individuals under the Ryan White grant in Brooklyn, New York. Florence shares her passion for nutrition and culinary arts with clients eager to optimize their nutrition intake.


Sarah Ganginis MS, RD, LDN, is an anti-diet dietitian and advocate for respecting size diversity. She has advocated, volunteered, and made changes to the health curriculum in Maryland, where she lives and where she has a private practice. Sarah’s passion is to change the landscape of health and nutrition education, a change that embraces size diversity and promotes curiosity and respect—rather than shame, guilt, and judgment—when it comes to food and nutrition.

Florence and Sarah have been friends and colleagues for over ten years. Both mothers and dietitians, they are experts in nutrition education with experience in eating disorder treatment, feeding kids, selective eating, and big picture health for all ages.

Illustrator Bio:

Aurelio Del Pino is the nephew and godson of Sarah Ganginis and was fourteen years old at the time the initial illustrations were created. Aurelio loves playing basketball, making music, and skiing.

 

Book Blitz for Perfectly Polished by Lynne Hancock Pearson with a GIVEAWAY

 

Perfectly Polished
Lynne Hancock Pearson
(Keeney Builds, #2)
Publication date: February 10th 2025
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

He made good on his promise to call. She refused to answer.

Facing an embarrassing divorce and fighting against her controlling mother, Fiona doesn’t have time for the broody ex-con, despite toe-curling kisses that still star in her dreams.

Surprise doesn’t begin to describe her reaction when he appears in her company’s boardroom months later. And ignores her.

Tomas tells himself he’s no longer interested in the tightly wound executive. But he can’t stop wondering if she’s all right. Can’t stop wanting to pick up the pieces. Can’t stop thinking about how perfect she felt in his arms.

Defying her mother, Fiona gives Tomas a chance, and they connect over their shared dream of building affordable housing. The community rallies around them, but not everyone is on board, and roadblocks are thrown up to challenge their plan and their relationship.

Can they build something solid despite threats to their foundation? Is permanent even possible when family differences turn ugly?

Perfectly Polished is a small-town, opposites-attract romance between a burly builder who grunts more than he speaks and a polished professional who has never known love.

Goodreads / Amazon

EXCERPT:

Forty-five minutes.

Fiona Han discreetly turned off the alarm on her smart watch. It wasn’t that she was having a bad time, these were nice people. But they were people who knew far too much about her, and she was ready for this day to be over. With a small smile, she said, “I called an uber. Hilary, thanks for inviting me. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

“I’ll drive you home.”

Fiona blinked and stared at Tomas Alvarado. “Umm… Thanks, but I’m fine.” She waved her phone at him and put it into her purse.

He stood and looked down at her. “I’ll drive you home.”

Eep!

She did not want to make a scene. He didn’t give off the axe-murderer vibe, and her friends were grinning at her like he was perfectly safe, but the man unnerved her.

Marcia Ortiz, a woman in her mid-fifties, and best friend to Fiona’s mother in law Iris, touched her hand. “You’ll be fine,” she murmured.

Fiona rose, tucked her purse under her arm and followed Tomas to the stairs leading from Hilary’s deck to the driveway. She glanced back at Marcia, who winked at her.

Eep!

Descending the stairs, she was aware of the man behind her. It seemed that for the past two weeks, Tomas had been at her back, without saying a word. Reaching the driveway, she faced three white pick-up trucks bearing the logo for Keeney Building Supplies, the company Iris owned. With a hand to her elbow, Tomas guided her to the one in the middle, distinguishable from the others by the rosary hanging from the rearview mirror, and opened the passenger door. Fiona eyed the distance up to the seat of the truck, then down at her pencil skirt and heels. Then she was up. Tomas placed her gently on the seat and reached around to buckle the seat belt.

“I’m not a child!” She glared up at him.

He met her eyes fully for the very first time. “I know you’re not.” He closed the door and walked around the hood of the truck.

Walk was the wrong word. Tomas prowled like a predator. Did that make her his prey?

He climbed behind the wheel, his presence taking up all the air in the truck. Fiona wanted to open the window, to breathe, perhaps to crawl out.

Placing a large hand on the back of her seat, he ignored her as he turned to back out of the driveway. She could smell him. If she turned her head, ever so slightly, she could brush up against his hand and rub his scent all over her. Where had that thought come from? Fiona shook her head and stared forward.

“I live on Dunlop Street,” she told him.

“I know.” Tomas met her eyes in the rearview mirror. “I changed the locks on your doors last week.”

“Right,” she said in a small voice. To keep the douche canoe of her soon to be ex-husband out. Her eyes got big. “I haven’t paid you yet! I’m so sorry, I forgot all about it. I can write you a cheque when we get to the house. It’s just –”

“It’s taken care of.”

“Oh.” Tomas worked for her mother-in-law. Iris must have had him do it. “Thank you.”

He drove in silence.

Not knowing how to converse with someone who clearly didn’t like to talk, she leaned her head back, and closed her eyes.

She awoke to see Tomas scouring the word ‘cunt’ off her garage door.

Fiona threw herself from the truck, stumbling as she hit the ground. She righted herself and flew around the hood of the truck. Tomas whirled and grimaced.

“Ohmygod. Ohmygod. Ohmygod,” she chanted, pacing back and forth in front of the garage. Scrawled in dripping red paint, each capital letter was at least two feet high.

Eddie.

He’d chosen a public and humiliating way to get back at her.

Author Bio:

Lynne Hancock Pearson writes fun, flirty, feel-good fiction that simmers at low heat. Set in the Pacific Northwest, they are stories of people finding their way, even if it takes a while to get there.

She lives near Seattle with two and a half finicky felines and one long-suffering husband. She is a left-handed middle child who grew up in the Great White North and is a proud member of the Mรฉtis Nation of Canada.

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Thursday, February 13, 2025

Release Blitz for Lucky Shot by K. Bromberg

 


Lucky Shot by K. Bromberg is now live! 


๐€ ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ข๐œ๐ฒ ๐›๐š๐ ๐›๐จ๐ฒ/๐ ๐จ๐จ๐ ๐ ๐ข๐ซ๐ฅ, ๐œ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฌ๐ž ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฑ๐ข๐ฆ๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ, ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ๐ฌ ๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ๐š๐ง๐œ๐ž ๐Ÿ๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐ž๐ฐ ๐˜๐จ๐ซ๐ค ๐“๐ข๐ฆ๐ž๐ฌ ๐›๐ž๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฌ๐ž๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐š๐ฎ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ซ, ๐Š. ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ๐›๐ž๐ซ๐ 

Our first meeting? He stood me up.
Our second chance encounter? I told him exactly what I thought of him.
Our third? It came with a bet (he lost) and an understanding that we’re stuck with one another.

It doesn’t matter that he’s Alexander Hardy—British soccer star extraordinaire, world-famous in every way, and a certified sex symbol. We come from two different worlds and live in two different realities. But all we need is one month.

The bet: Help him rehab his reputation to the media and the masses, and in exchange, he’ll help my soccer academy and the underprivileged kids who idolize him.

That doesn’t mean I have to like him. Not his delicious accent, his sexy smirk or those storm cloud gray eyes. Not his incredibly fit body or his sinfully dirty mouth. Not even the way he shows up day after day for the kids or the way he looks at me like he wants to devour me.

He looks at time spent in my world as a penance, while I look at it as a way to leverage his star power to help my academy survive.

But as the days turn to weeks, it seems we’re not as different as I once thought. The man who cares about no one, has fixed his sights on me. With his time at my academy up and his obligations back home calling, do we have a lucky shot of working out?



Download today or read FREE on Kindle Unlimited


https://geni.us/LuckyAmz


Audible: Coming Soon!

Audio Interest Form:  https://bit.ly/40vShOA


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Meet Kristy



New York Times Bestselling author K. Bromberg writes contemporary romance novels that make you work to get your happily ever after. She likes to write strong heroines and damaged heroes, who we love to hate but can’t help but love.


Since publishing her first book on a whim in 2013, Kristy has sold over two million copies of her books across twenty different countries and has landed on the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestsellers lists over thirty times. (She still wakes up and asks herself how she got so lucky for all this to happen.)


A mom of three, Kristy finds the only thing harder than finishing the book she’s writing is navigating parenthood during the teenage years (send more wine!). She loves dogs, sports, a good book, and is an expert procrastinator. She lives in Southern California with her family.

 

Connect with Kristy


Website: www.kbromberg.com

Goodreads: http://smarturl.it/Kbromberg_GR

Amazon: http://smarturl.it/KBrombergAmz

Facebook: http://smarturl.it/KBrombergFB

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Release Blitz for Captivating by Bella Matthews

 



Captivating by Bella Matthews is now live! 


From USA Today and #1 Amazon Bestselling Author Bella Matthews comes an Enemies to Lovers, Fake Dating, Sports Romance.

Killian St. James was the boy I loved. Now he’s the man I love to hate.  

To the world, I’m America’s sweetheart. A brand built on fairy tales and love songs that sell millions. But the truth? I’m not sure I believe in happily ever afters . . . At least not for me. 

Burned-out and desperate for a break, I return to my hometown, craving quiet and a tiny taste of freedom. But instead of peace, I find a stalker in the shadows, paparazzi on my heels, and a meddling family with their own ideas about my life. 

Everyone insists I need protection, and having my new bodyguard pose as my fake boyfriend makes total sense . . . Not that they asked me. If that’s not enough, did I mention that Killian is all too happy to volunteer for the job?  

This MMA champion is brooding, relentless, and inconveniently perfect at keeping me safe. He’s also unimaginably gorgeous, with a quiet confidence that’s even sexier than the ink tattooed on his golden skin.  

But as lines blur and sparks fly, I’m left wondering if the boy I once loved could be the man I can trust with my life . . . and my heart. 


  Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

Amazon: https://a.co/d/jgwBaMK


Goodreads: https://bit.ly/4iwL3C6


Meet Bella



Bella Matthews is a USA Today & #1 Amazon Bestselling author. She is married to her very own Alpha Male and raising three little ones. You can typically find her running from one sporting event to another. When she is home, she is usually hiding in her home office with the only other female in her house, her rescue dog Tinker Bell by her side. She likes to write swoon-worthy heroes and sassy, smart heroines. Sarcasm is her love language and big family dynamics are her favorite thing to add to each story.

 

Connect with Bella

Website: www.authorbellamatthews.com  

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20795160.Bella_Matthews 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B08NFK9K4M?ingress=0&visitId=8b4845c0-1ab8-467b-ac2a-4ddf36d673fd   

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Book Blitz for Can't Help Falling in Love by Mariah Ankenman with a GIVEAWAY

 

Can’t Help Falling In Love
Mariah Ankenman
Publication date: February 13th 2025
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Growing up with three brothers, Charlie Jackson had to be tough. Some might call her the B word, but she simply defends those who need it. Unfortunately, not everyone sees her protection as defense. Like the judge who ordered her to take anger management classes after she messed up her jerk ex’s car. Not a problem, a few months pretending to listen to a bunch of people talk about accessing feelings should go down as smooth as the vodka her family makes at their distillery.

Luc Woolf knows all about harboring anger at the world. Growing up with a father who liked the bottle more than his family, he suffered his fair share of rage. But he gave up that emotion long ago when he realized anger did nothing but make a person miserable. These days, he keeps a cool head and helps others process their emotions as a therapist. However, when he volunteers to moderate an anger management course, he meets the one person who tests his careful control, Charlie Jackson.

The two couldn’t be more at odds, but they can’t deny the scorching heat between them. This bad girl wants to show this good boy how much fun breaking the rules can be. After all, opposites attract. But when the struggles of real life interrupt their fun times, will their differences pull them apart or bond them together?

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks

EXCERPT:

Luc Woolf sat at the table, a smart-ass grin ticking up the corner of his mouth. “We have to stop meeting like this.”

The smooth, deep voice washed over her like silk. She would not laugh at his ridiculous attempt at humor. But damn it all, she felt the curve of her lips as a smile she couldn’t seem to stop, turned them up.

“Damn small towns.”

He chuckled. “I thought you owned a bar?”

“I do.”

“But you’re a server on the side?” He tilted his head. “There a large abolition following in Kismet I’m not aware of?”

“No. The distillery does great. So great in fact that we expanded into a restaurant. One of the servers had an emergency and needed her shift covered.”

Dark brows rose. “And the boss filled in?”

“We’re a family run establishment.” She shrugged. “It’s what you do when your family needs help. You help.”

Something passed through his eyes. Respect. She had no idea why, but it made a warm fuzzy feeling rise in her stomach. Luc seemed to understand and even applaud her actions of the evening. Stupid. She didn’t give a rat’s ass what he thought.

Then why was her heart suddenly racing?

“So,” he grabbed his menu again, breaking the moment. “What’s good here?”

“Everything. And I don’t just say that because I co-own the joint. Our chef is amazing. What do you like?”

“I’m not picky.”

He said that, but they were half an hour away from Denver. Hipster central. Trends took off like wildfire in the city and spread like the plague to the small tourists’ towns like Kismet. Currently they’d had to accommodate for everything from Paleo to gluten free patrons. She had no problem catering to a customer who had a food allergy, but she really hated the bandwagon eaters who fussed and complained because they were strictly gluten free and then ordered a piece of cheesecake with graham cracker crust.

“No allergies? No weird fad diets?”

“Do I look like I do fad diets?” He arched one eyebrow.

No, he did not. In fact, the man looked like he ate steel for breakfast and iron for dinner. A dark V-neck sweater clung tight to his chest revealing just a hint of chest hair. The sleeves were pushed up past his elbows, revealing tightly muscled forearms. Damn, had she ever found forearms sexy before? She did tonight.

“A meat and potatoes kind of guy?” Her mouth felt too dry. She swallowed, trying for the life of her to find some saliva. “Our steak is amazing, but if you prefer fish, we have a great salmon with dill sauce.”

He held the menu in his fingers, but his gaze focused on her. “It all sounds amazing.”

Her breath caught in her throat, brain blanking. How did this guy render her speechless with just a look? It wasn’t fair. No one should be that sexy.

“Um, yeah. It is.” Clever Charlie. “What can I bring you?”

He placed the menu at the edge of the table, eyes never leaving hers. “You pick.”

“What?”

“You own the place. You know what’s best. You pick something for me.”

Shaking herself out of whatever weird fog she’d been in, she laughed. “You want me to pick your meal.” He nodded. Licking her lips, she placed her hand on the table and leaned down. “How do you know I won’t poison you?”

He wasn’t exactly her favorite person, and she’d made no bones about it. He leaned toward her until they were inches apart. She could smell the sharp mint of his breath, feel its warmth on her lips and cheeks. Her blood began to heat, heart racing in her chest. This was ridiculous! She should not react this way to a man who’d done nothing but annoy the crap out of her since the moment she ran into him.

“You do need me to sign off on your anger management course. If I suddenly die after eating at an establishment you own it might look pretty sketchy to the judge,” he said the words in a teasing tone, the dimple in his cheek catching her eye at his wide grin.

Laughter bubbled out of her. “True. Plus, it’d be a shame to poison all that sexy.”

The moment the words left her mouth she wanted to shove them back in.

Surprise lifted his brow. “You think I’m sexy?”

Embarrassment flooded her, so she did what she always did when she felt insecure. She pushed away from the table, crossing her arms over her chest, and brought out her trademark sarcasm. “Don’t fish for compliments. You own a damn mirror.”

He grinned, leaning back in his chair. “You’re not so bad yourself, Charlie.”


Author Bio:

Bestselling author Mariah Ankenman lives in the beautiful Rocky Mountains with her two rambunctious children and loving spouse who is her own personal spell checker when her dyslexia gets the best of her.

Mariah loves to lose herself in a world of words. Her favorite thing about writing is when she can make someone’s day a little brighter with one of her books. To learn more about Mariah and her books visit her website www.mariahankenman.com

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Instagram / X


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Wednesday, February 12, 2025

Release Blitz for The Boys Series Omnibus (Books 1-3) by Micalea Smeltzer

 



The Boys Series Omnibus (Books 1-3) by Micalea Smeltzer is now live! 


The Boys Series Omnibus includes books 1-3 (Bad Boys Break Hearts, Nice Guys Don't Win, and Real Players Never Lose) If you're new to the series this is a great way to get started.

Bad Boys Break Hearts Tropes:

Childhood Friends To Enemies To Lovers

Second Chance

Baseball

Nice Guys Don't Win Tropes:
Roommates

Coach's Daughter

Basketball


Real Players Never Lose Tropes:
Fake Dating
Plus Size Heroine
He Falls First and Harder


Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

Amazon Worldwide: https://mybook.to/theboysseries


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Meet Micalea




Micalea Smeltzer is a twenty-something author from Northern Virginia. She has four dogs, which is as crazy as it sounds. As a recent kidney transplant recipient she's dedicated to raising awareness around the effects of kidney disease, dialysis, and transplant as well as educating people on living donation.When she's not writing you can catch her with her nose buried in a book.

 

Connect with Micalea

Website: https://micaleasmeltzer.com/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5371025.Micalea_Smeltzer

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